Quand Marie oublie sa trousse, Paul lui prête un crayon.

Paul

Breakdown of Quand Marie oublie sa trousse, Paul lui prête un crayon.

• Marie: Marie
• quand: when
• oublier: to forget

Questions & Answers about Quand Marie oublie sa trousse, Paul lui prête un crayon.

What does quand mean here: when or whenever?

Here quand can be understood as when in a general sense, often close to whenever.

So the sentence means something like:

• When/Whenever Marie forgets her pencil case, Paul lends her a pencil.

Because both verbs are in the present tense, it sounds like a habitual or repeated situation, not one single event.

Why are both verbs in the present tense: oublie and prête?

French often uses the present tense to talk about:

• general truths
• habits
• things that happen regularly

So Marie oublie = Marie forgets and Paul prête = Paul lends

This does not necessarily mean it is happening right this second. It can mean this is what usually happens in that situation.

Why is it sa trousse?